


The Year of Living Dangerously

by Rroselavy



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-01-18
Updated: 2011-01-18
Packaged: 2017-10-14 21:01:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/153423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rroselavy/pseuds/Rroselavy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Amid their year of travel, Koumyou reflects on the nature of his and Ukoku’s relationship.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Year of Living Dangerously

**Author's Note:**

  * For [samsarapine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/samsarapine/gifts).



The inn was extravagant by any standard, certainly far more luxurious accommodation than two itinerant priests could have hoped for. Yet there they were, bone-tired from many days of traveling on foot in the thin highland air, comfortably lodged in a near-deserted private inn. They’d come upon the picturesque building suddenly; it had appeared almost magically around the bend of the wheel-rutted, muddy mountain road they’d been traversing--an oasis that Koumyou was certain had been built up around one of the tranquil hot springs that dotted the mountainside, some time after he’d completed his training with Jikaku so many years ago.

Koumyou had gratefully accepted the owner’s offer to feed them and put them up overnight. The inn itself was in the process of being closed to clientele for the season, the only occupants left were the owner, his family, and a couple of hired handymen who were busy preparing the buildings for onset of the brutal winter.

After a sumptuous meal with the jovial innkeeper, his demure wife and shy teenage daughter, Koumyou had left Ukoku in his own room, sprawled face-down on the bed, looking very much like the adolescent he was. Koumyou hadn’t missed the secretive exchanged glances between the two teens, and he wasn’t so thick as to not understand what the unspoken exchange would most likely lead to; Ukoku was probably feigning sleep to get rid of him for a while.

It gave Koumyou a twinge of guilt whenever he allowed himself to consider the chronological difference between them--for all his worldliness and experience Ukoku was still only half Koumyou’s age. The problem, as Koumyou saw it, was that Ukoku didn’t know how to act his age; in that he was very much like his own Kouryuu. And like Kouryuu had when he’d entered Koumyou’s life, Ukoku made him feel alive again. Ukoku elicited emotions that Koumyou had buried long ago--so long ago that Koumyou’d believed they were dead. But now, it was as if he’d been awakened from a coma and, despite the affect of indifference Ukoku cloaked himself in, Koumyou was able to see through his façade. Whatever burgeoning feelings he may have been experiencing toward the teen, Koumyou was certain that they were more than reciprocated. That thought alone should have disturbed him, but Koumyou found only that it fueled the delicate flame of desire that had flared suddenly during their travels.

At first, he’d been optimistic that his infatuation would pass unnoticed and unacted upon, that eventually it would wane over the course of their travels. But as the weeks turned into months, Koumyou found that his thoughts were more and more often drifting into dangerous territory.

And this particular afternoon had been no exception. Everywhere Koumyou looked, there were private nooks or quiet passageways where he and Ukoku could retire away from curious eyes. The beds in each of their rooms were opulently dressed and oversized--spacious enough for two full-grown men to sleep in comfortably. Or do _other_ things. Those thoughts gave way to images that flashed through Koumyou’s mind: Ukoku in various states of undress, the shadows playing over toned muscles and tawny skin. Koumyou imagined what that supple flesh would feel like under his fingerpads, what noises Ukoku would make when he trailed his fingers over sensitive areas--the concave curve of his pelvis. What his lips would taste like if he ran his tongue over them.

But for now, there was this matter of the girl. Koumyou didn’t feel exactly jealous of her--while she may have been bright in her own right and definitely had a lovely body--it was easy to see she was no match for Ukoku’s rapier wit. It was probably a good thing they were only staying over for one evening; there would be no broken hearts in the morning when they said their good-byes.

He made his way down the trail to the natural springs. The flat basalt slabs that served as paving were flanked by slender bamboo culms that swayed in a light breeze; the fronds whispered as he passed by. Interspersed along the path were quaint wooden bridges that spanned tiny rivulets. Steam rose from the surface of the water, adding damp warmth to the cool highlands air. The main pool was surrounded by deciduous trees--the leaves just beginning to turn, the vibrant colors almost fluorescent in the blue light of dusk. Adjacent to the spring was an open-air pagoda that housed showers. Koumyou hung his borrowed robe on a peg and then braced himself under the cold faucet. Gooseflesh rose on his skin almost instantly; Koumyou prolonged the shower until he was sure his lips would be blue, then toed off his rubber flip-flops.

Under normal circumstances, Koumyou would wear a modesty towel, but since he had the pool to himself he just carried a towel to wrap himself in when he was done soaking. He stepped into the water, the heat immediately warming his body. Combined with the chill from his cold shower, it reminded him of the baths at Taisou. Koumyou closed his eyes, remembering the harsh training he’d endured there with Goudai and Tenkai. He felt sadness settle over him as he thought of his two friends--one lost years ago, the other so much more recently, at the hands of Ukoku Sanzo. The melancholy was tinged with guilt and confusion, too. While Koumyou believed there was a reason for the events that had transpired at Zenouji that culminated with a new sanzo priest, he couldn’t help but feel a small sense of betrayal.

At first, Koumyou had believed Goudai had made a terrible tactical error in the way in which he treated his protégé, but upon reflection, Koumyou came to the conclusion that his old friend knew exactly what he was doing. None of the other contenders had Keny’uu’s steely will. What remained a puzzle to Koumyou, though, was what Goudai had expected from him. Or the Sanbutsushin, for that matter, when They charged him with a year of travel with the younger priest.

Koumyou opened his eyes and gazed at the ultraviolet sky in the clearing above the pool. A single leaf drifted lazily down, five razor-sharp lobes mimicking the fingers of an outstretched hand. It still looked very much alive--plucked from the tree in an untimely manner, the sole difference that separated it from its kin being its color. It glowed gold, a stark contrast to the black water that it landed in. Small ripples emanated from its landing point, concentric circles widening and growing more diffuse. The water had been permanently altered, just as it had been when Koumyou stepped into the pool.

Perhaps that was the lesson!

“Penny for your thoughts?”

Koumyou looked up from the leaf as it spun aimlessly. Ukoku stood by the lip of the pool, dressed in an identical robe. His hair was damp and unruly, as if it had been hurriedly towel-dried. His face looked naked without his glasses; Koumyou may have thought it vulnerable were it not for the sardonic curl of his lips.

“I didn’t expect to see you again tonight.”

“Why not?” Ukoku shrugged his shoulders. “There’s nothing much else to do.”

“Oh, I know how you young people are, how the blood runs hot,” Koumyou replied brightly. Specifically, he’d seen how hot Ukoku’s blood could run.

“Is that so?” Ukoku asked, loosening his obi. The robe slid from his shoulders and he stood brazenly nude in front of Koumyou. His member was semi-erect, Koumyou noted before averting his eyes. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry.

“And I’m sure it must be boring to be in the company of an old man every waking hour,” he said weakly. He could feel his body reacting to Ukoku’s proud display. Koumyou wanted to admonish him, tell him to cover up or someone might see him, but it seemed foolish, as if he were _afraid_ of the younger man. And that wasn’t it at all; it was more that he was afraid of his own reaction. All his desire, so carefully concealed and tamped down, came rushing to the forefront.

Ukoku stepped into the water and settled with a satisfied ‘ _Ahhhhh …_ ’

“Actually, I like your company. Maybe, I even prefer it to a … pleasant diversion,” he winked at Koumyou.

So that was all she was! “Is that so?” he echoed.

Ukoku moved closer.

“It is. And you aren’t old.”

“My bones beg to differ.”

“I’ll wager your bone is begging for something else altogether,” Ukoku chuckled. To Koumyou’s dismay, it wasn’t the nervous kind he would expect from a seventeen year-old. It was throaty and _knowing_. Ukoku sat next to him, their shoulders touching, and then his hand slid into Koumyou’s lap. “Just as I expected,” he remarked as his fingers ghosted over Koumyou’s erection. He waggled his brows.

Koumyou sat motionless, his hands gripping the ledge he was perched on. He knew what he _should_ do, but part of him wanted to see what Ukoku would do if left unchecked. And it felt good. All the tension that had been gathered in his body over the course of their travels suddenly snapped. Relief flooded over Koumyou, he felt looser and, paradoxically, more in control than he had since he’d left the Three Aspects’ presence with his orders.

Ukoku hesitated, as if he expected to be rebuked.

“Well? Don’t tell me you’ve lost your nerve now,” Koumyou said. He offered Ukoku a smile and then wrapped his hand around Ukoku’s, still curled around his erection. Ukoku took the hint and began to stroke him in tantalizingly slow movements. The sensation was sublime. Exhilarating. It had been years since someone had touched Koumyou like that, and Ukoku … well, Ukoku was quite good at it. Koumyou slid his hand along Ukoku’s hard length, falling into the same rhythm, meting out the same pleasure. Their visible breaths mingled in the cool air; the water lapped against the pebbled rim of the pool. The leaf cavorted over the surface.

Ukoku sighed and Koumyou felt his dick pulse underneath his palm. The gentle sound was amplified in the quiet solitude that surrounded them. Koumyou rocked his hips, urging Ukoku to hurry it up, to no avail. He felt his climax bearing down on him a pressure welling from deep inside his gut, spreading out to his nerve-endings. Koumyou bit his lip as his release overtook him. Dizzy, he took a deep breath of the crisp mountain air and let his head fall back. The colors above the pool seemed more vibrant than they had just minutes before.

There was nothing to say--at least nothing that wouldn’t spoil the peaceful companionship. Ukoku slapped the surface of the water with his hand. The leaf, which had floated near, skittered away. Koumyou watched it meander about the pool, drifting on unseen currents.

Yes, indeed, he reflected, that was the lesson exactly. Brought together, neither of them would ever be the same.


End file.
